vj604

As we all know, the stock CD player sucks in the heat when its old. The changer doesnt change discs.

A possibility is that the electrolytic capacitors have dried up over the 10 years since the car was made. Has anyone opened up the stock cd player? Are there surface mount elecrteolytic caps? I dont want to go through the effort of removing it, which I have not done before and opening it up only to find there are none in there and that I cannot service it myself. I was thinking if there are caps in there , then i could clip them and replace them. let me know what you think....

also, before i get suggestions on user servicing, I am an EE major at Georgia Tech and have access to plenty of test equipment and solder and so on...let me know..

VJ

O. L. T.

iTrader: (17)

oh boy we are going to have some fun now

removing the changer is easy (2 screws maybe 3) inside you will find the caps you are looking for. if you have a digital camera post some pics when you get inside. mine doesnt do closeups well so i can never get a good enough picture. always good to see a fellow tech on the boards. you wont have any problem at all in there, it is well designed. just dive in and do it. come back and update on the progress too.

Dlewbell

Hey, I haven't opened mine up yet, but since it seems to be completely useless to me in the current condition, and I have no money to have it repaired with, I will be opening it as soon as I get the time. If I do it this weekend, I could bring it with me Monday, because I'm going to Georgia Tech to tour the campus. If not, I'll let you know when I finally do get around to it.

Pianoman72

Hey VJ, I think you are right about how to fix your changer. I have another question for you. Can you test eletrolytic caps with a voltmeter in circuit? You can't, right? I am trying to fix a pretty nice Sony tape deck where the record deck has no speed control (too fast). I figure it's one of the caps so I was just going to have an electrician replace ALL of them (seven). Do you think that's a good idea? I'm not sure if they're going to think I'm crazy or not.

vj604

one last try - this weekend is the test...will check it out..

dlewbell - i will post an update here on how it works and whether its a hard or easy fix..

and pianoman - you cant test caps with a voltmeter. you need an RCL meter (resistance, capacitance, and inductance...yes the L is for inductance)

youre pretty much SOL without that to check caps. with a regular DMM...they will show you continuity if you check resistance...with a voltage it will look like an open circuit.

once again, ill update here.

also..by sony deck do you mean turntable?

funny since i am a DJ also...
turntables regulate pitch control (slowing the platter speed or speeding it up) with the use of a potentiometer (variable resistor) this has nothing to do with caps. if its in your home its very unlikely that you have a problem with bad electrolytics....

later on...

VJ

asnatlas

iTrader: (2)

These electrolytic capacitors?? Do they affect say… Certain CDs in certain slots of the cartridge ?? The problem I am having is some CD will not work in some slots but if I switch them they work fine it is VERY ODD and I don't see how this can be, I know the CD it not back because it works in a diff slot and I know the slot plays other CDs and also I don't see how a certain slot on the cartridge could go bad when the cartridge only holds the CD and then it is taken out and placed on the reading lens...

Anyone else have this problem? That is the only thing that is wrong with my CD changer is that ... I can read CD-R's and going over bumps are also good but that damn picky *** "I will not read this CD from this slot" and its pissing me off


Thanx all
Shawn

vj604

i cant tell you waht the capacitors do per se without a schematic diagram, which no one has of course.

capacitors hold charge and serve many functions in playback of recorded media...ill save the details.

ive got the problem with the slot too...1 and 12...if i throw a disc in there it will eat it or not read it...

Pianoman72

Yes and no, I did have that problem with a turntable but gave up when someone in my building threw away a sweet DUAL which was much easier to repair - it needed a new cartridge! haha

The deck I am referring to is a sony cassette deck. I do not see any visual problems with it. it is as clean as a whistle in and out and it is probably only 5 years old. The record deck plays tapes wildly too fast and trying to correct with the pitch control **** has no effect. This happens in both directions. The play deck has no problems. If you have any ideas feel free to PM me anytime. If you think you can fix it I would be more than happy to pay you for your time/parts, too.

Sorry for going off-topic. Good luck to everyone with your changers!!!!

strongsail

I do not pretend to be a tech but I am a pretty good troubleshooter - if you are having problems with cds playing when loaded in certain cartridge slots, and they play ok in other slots, I immediately suspect the cartridge. Some slots in the cartridge may be sticky, dirty, who knows. Invest in a second cartridge, or borrow one if you can, and see if the cd plays in the same slot numbers that you had trouble with in the first cartridge. If they do, it's the cartridge. If they don't, I have no clue. I have never had to open up my cd changer. It works fine - - most of the time. The only problem I have experienced is an occasional error message when for some reason the player won't read the data track when starting a cd. Turning the head unit off, pausing 5 seconds, and turning it back on (i.e., rebooting the changer) always clears the problem.

I have noticed that the unit skips a little more often when I go over bumps since I got new rims and 45-series tires

asnatlas

iTrader: (2)

That is just is only certain CD will not play in certain slots, Its not the slot because if I play a diff CD in there it works fine, and its not the CD because I can play that CD from that slot in to a diff slot it works fine also, so for some odd *** reason its certain CD in certain slot and like you I am good with troubleshooting but that makes not damn since to me LOL... When it first started happening I was thinking what you were and I tried all the diff stuff and when I was done I found it was not the slot nor the CD because they work just depending on what CD are in what slots, its VERY ODD..............


Shawn

vj604

heh..this is fine to troubleshoot but why bother if the changer wont change cds at hotter than 70 degrees?

strongsail

hmmm asnatlas that is serious weird - - tends to defy logic, dudnit? Don't know how putting that same cd in the same slot in a different cartridge would help, but it would be interesting to find out what would happen -

When I run across an unknowable situation with my PC, it's Workaround Time - sounds like the solution for you may be, just never put that cd in that slot!

I know that's not really the answer - -

Um, what was the question again?

SCV8

My CD player has tracking/head adjustment issues;does anyone know about a procedure to re-establish the factory positioning of that?

philauldridge

I had a similar problem with mine. sometimes a CD would load from a certain cartridge position, other times not. Being a DIY kinda guy, I yanked the changer out of the car (very easy), and removed the cover. Turns out there are precision alignment adjusting screws to make sure the individual cartridge slot mates up perfectly with the actual loading slot.

I left the cover off and observed the movement while exercising the changer, and was able to determine where the misalignment was occuring. Then it was a matter of a few trial-and-error adjustments until I got everything correct. I've had no problems since.